Some days to find something interesting to write about on the daily daf is challenging. The arguments are complex, intricate, and not really relevant to modern life. Other days I find choosing something to write about difficult because the daf is overflowing with wonderful topics and I really don’t want to ignore any one of them. Daf TB Eiruvin 13 is one of those latter dappim. We learn a little bit about Rabbi Meir’s biography, laws concerning writing a Torah scroll, a get (a bill of divorce), and a Sotah’s scroll (A sotah is a woman whose husband suspects her of having an adulterous relationship. Don’t worry if you don’t know too much about this ritual because there’s a whole massechet we will eventually get to that deals with this subject.) I highly recommend that you read this entire daf on your own.
There are only 72 more days until November 3rd when we vote for the next president of the United States. While explaining why Bet Hillel’s positions were overwhelmingly chosen over Bet Shammai’s as the halakha, TB Eiruvin 13 enumerates some of the qualities I believe we should look for in the candidate we shall vote for.
“Rabbi Abba said that Shmuel said: For three years Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel disagreed. These said: The halakha is in accordance with our opinion, and these said: The halakha is in accordance with our opinion. Ultimately, a Divine Voice emerged and proclaimed: Both these and those are the words of the living God. However, the halakha is in accordance with the opinion of Beit Hillel.
“The Gemara asks: Since both these and those are the words of the living God, why were Beit Hillel privileged to have the halakha established in accordance with their opinion? The reason is that they were agreeable and forbearing, showing restraint when affronted, and when they taught the halakha they would teach both their own statements and the statements of Beit Shammai. Moreover, when they formulated their teachings and cited a dispute, they prioritized the statements of Beit Shammai to their own statements, in deference to Beit Shammai…
“This is to teach you that anyone who humbles himself, the Holy One, Blessed be He, exalts him, and anyone who exalts himself, the Holy One, Blessed be He, humbles him. Anyone who seeks greatness, greatness flees from him, and, conversely, anyone who flees from greatness, greatness seeks him. And anyone who attempts to force the moment and expends great effort to achieve an objective precisely when he desires to do so, the moment forces him too, and he is unsuccessful. And conversely, anyone who is patient and yields to the moment, the moment stands by his side, and he will ultimately be successful.” (Sefaria.org translation)
A presidential candidate should be agreeable and forbearing not only showing restraint when affronted, the candidate should never humiliate anybody for any reason. I like Rabbi Abraham Twersky’s definition of humility. A humble person doesn’t have to say, “I am nothing. I am worthless. I don’t know anything.” Let’s say if Moses Maimonides ever said those things he would be lying and person should never lie. According to Rabbi Twersky, a humble person says, “I have not yet reached my full human potential.” A person should not run for the presidency in order to aggrandize and enrich and himself. The president needs to serve the best interests of the people. Patience is indeed a virtual. These are only some of the qualities I look for in a president.
I think the choice is clear. What do you think?
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